Working paper # 1/2022 – Regulations and the characteristics of Airbnb across Europe: An explorative study

Short-term accommodation rentals provided via Airbnb had a major impact on urban tourism across Europe. Cities reacted to the challenges related to Airbnb in various ways, pursuing a wide range of regulatory strategies between laisses-faire and almost full ban policies. The aim of this paper is to examine the attributes related to the professionalization of Airbnb in 12 major EU cities, and evaluate the role of local regulations. The results suggest that cities with a liberal approach are characterized by relatively larger and more professionalized Airbnb supply compared to locations with a tighter regulatory strategy.